Break the Silence: Sexual Violence Awareness Art Exhibit

Break the Silence: Sexual Violence Awareness Art Exhibit

There is a need to build upon social change and the time is now. In the creation of the Break the Silence Photography Series for Sexual Violence Awareness, Stephanie Santore and Ashley Matthews asked volunteers to step forward to reveal their personal experience with sexual violence or abuse. They also welcomed supporters of the cause that included friends/family members of those affected to speak out against it.

This event will be a part of August First Friday Scranton. The event will double ...

There is a need to build upon social change and the time is now. In the creation of the Break the Silence Photography Series for Sexual Violence Awareness, Stephanie Santore and Ashley Matthews asked volunteers to step forward to reveal their personal experience with sexual violence or abuse. They also welcomed supporters of the cause that included friends/family members of those affected to speak out against it.

This event will be a part of August First Friday Scranton. The event will double as a fundraiser for the Women's Resource Center - more details to come!

Attendees can view the exhibit and read the corresponding stories. There will also be information and resources available from organizations and colleges/universities in support of the cause and their efforts for its prevention within the community.

Stephanie’s Thoughts on the Project:

Ashley's Body Positivity series and her work through the Build Me Up Beautiful Project was what drew me to her. I knew she would handle this subject and the volunteers therein with the utmost care and compassion while creating imagery that would speak to people - of the emotional process, the trauma, the resiliency, the journey to recovery. She captured these emotions and these stories in an undescribable way.

This project is purposefully personal. It would be a way in which our community could see a collective of survivors and supporters and their personal experiences of the effects of sexual violence, whether it be assault or abuse. It happens more often than we would like to believe, even more than I wanted to imagine for our small piece of Pennsylvania. Someone you know and love may have experienced sexual trauma at some point in their life without you even knowing. If the majority of survivors stay silent for whatever reason, for so many reasons, for reasons we hope to change with this project and beyond, the truth of this will continue to remain unknown.

This project allowed survivors and supporters to come together as a collective voice against sexual violence to help spread awareness of its existence and the need for action against it, in our community, throughout our state, and within our country. Each experience is told through the individual in her own words, coupled with an image that depicts a raw emotion drawn from their story. Each experience varies, each of them coming from different backgrounds, and all of them up until now, chose to remain silent.

It’s time to talk about it. It's time to break the silence.

Ashley’s Thoughts on the Project:

Since I began photography fulltime, I haven't had time to do many personal projects and had been craving to create something experiential. Once Stephanie approached me about her campaign and idea, I was immediately drawn to her passion for her project and the idea of it. This particular subject is rough to talk about but it's very important to me. I wanted to help create portraits based off of the main emotions depicted in each person's story rather than a woman holding a sign with text.

I wasn't expecting what actually happened. It's such an intimate story to share with a stranger to be portrayed in a photo, so at first, I thought it would have been only super emotional for each individual sharing their story. However, there were nights I found myself restless while tossing and turning in bed because I was afraid to fall back asleep to some of the vivid nightmares I was having. Throughout the weeks while the volunteers and I were planning the ideas of the photos to correspond with their stories, I may have been feeling just as much emotional turmoil as they were.

As I mentioned, this subject is rough to talk about, but I believe it's so important to let everyone know that they are not alone. It's something we all need to come together and break the silence of. I expect this to be a very emotional art exhibit and I'm so grateful for the many volunteers that chose to share their stories and vulnerabilities.

Mission:

We can’t deny that violence occurs in our society and within our own communities. This violence will continue as long as sexism, racism, homophobia, classism and other forms of oppression exist. We will continue to breed individual and societal environments that to an extent, condone and excuse violence. This includes sexual assault and abuse. In order to fight for its prevention, we must also continue to work towards ending oppression across all spectrums of gender, race, class, and sexual orientation.

There is a need to talk about sexual violence more openly and without shame. We can no longer allow myths and misconceptions to dictate its handling in the aftermath and silence the affected. The more we talk, the more aware we become. And the clearer the picture, the clearer our understanding. There is still a need for change and it starts with us.

Perpetrators of sexual violence are more often than not, no stranger at all to their victims. We, as a society, need to face the reality that sexual assault isn’t left to only the most severe and depraved criminals. The perpetrators are our friends, our siblings, our classmates, our co-workers, our spouses, our family members, our next-door neighbors.

With a better understanding of who commits sexual violence, we can shift the focus on what changes need to be made as individuals, as family units, and as a community to work towards its prevention before a violent crime has been committed. And if committed, ensure law enforcement and our justice system handle the crime efficiently. We must work together to alter the way in which our society views sexual violence, the perpetrators of this violence, and the survivors who endure the aftermath as a result.

The change can begin at home, at school, or at work. By promoting respect for all walks of life, we can inspire those around us to live with compassion, kindness, and equality. We can encourage healthy communication and the expression of emotions. We can educate on the recognition and definition of boundaries to our children and our peers. We can teach the understanding of consent and what it means to ask for it.

Discussions must be had about the way in which we conduct ourselves. We can no longer condone actions, physical or verbal, that make sexual violence in any way seem socially acceptable. We can no longer brush off particular conduct or commentary that is labeled as “typical”. We need to develop the skills from a young age to speak out against poor behavior and correct it before it leads to criminal actions that are irreversible, actions that will affect someone for the rest of their life. We can no longer be encouragers or bystanders of this behavior. We must speak out.

It is our responsibility to educate ourselves, to become aware, and to inform those around us that violent behavior, attitudes, or comments, sexual or otherwise, are not acceptable. We need to raise the standard for everyone within our social circle as well as up and coming generations.